Kim Hak-do "Preparing Support Measures for Post-COVID Competitiveness of Fashion SMEs"

Jungjingong Chairman Holds On-Site Meeting with Fashion Industry SMEs and Ventures

Chairman Kim Hak-do

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Cheol-hyun] The Small and Medium Business Corporation (Chairman Kim Hak-do, hereinafter referred to as SBC) announced on the 17th that it held a meeting with representatives of small and medium-sized venture companies in the fashion industry who have suffered damage such as a sharp decline in sales due to the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19) at COEX.

Chairman Kim stated, "The fashion industry, which is sensitive to the economy and requires face-to-face consumption, is experiencing more severe damage such as a sharp decline in sales compared to other industries," and added, "We intend to identify on-site difficulties and prepare effective support measures." The meeting was attended by Chairman Kim, Seo Soon-hee, Chairman of Dunfield Alpha, Lee Bong-seung, Chairman of the Korea Jewelry Industry Cooperative Federation, and 11 representatives from the clothing and fashion industries, who shared difficulties and discussed ways to overcome COVID-19.

According to the Korea Federation of Textile Industries, the domestic fashion market size reached 43.8 trillion won last year, but from January to April this year, domestic clothing retail sales amounted to 14.8 trillion won, a 23.9% decrease compared to the previous year. It appears that the fashion industry, which is closely connected from fabric manufacturing to distribution, is taking a direct hit from the COVID-19-induced recession.

Seo Soon-hee, Chairman of Dunfield Alpha, known for brands such as Crocodile and Pierre Cardin, said, "If companies currently producing overseas due to production cost issues return to domestic production, it will also help create jobs," and added, "More active support measures are needed to lead reshoring of companies." Additionally, the attendees proposed specific institutional improvement measures to include department stores, large shopping malls, online shopping malls, and home shopping as places where emergency disaster relief funds can be used to revitalize clothing consumption.

In response, Chairman Kim introduced support projects such as the non-face-to-face online export platform GoBiz Korea and joint logistics projects, and stated that SBC will actively support the business transition of fashion industry companies to high value-added and industrial products so that they can quickly respond to industrial structure reorganization. Chairman Kim said, "We will carefully examine the difficulties and suggestions raised at the meeting from the perspective of small business policy demanders," and added, "We will prepare systematic support measures so that the fashion industry can overcome the COVID-19 crisis early and gain competitiveness in the post-COVID era."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.